Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2021 i AUTOSPORT

@BenAndersonF1 The ramifications of 2020’s driver market merry-go-round now play out in front of our eyes. They suggest Formula 1 is tougher than ever – even for drivers with phenomenal reputations, now under threat like never before. To hear competitors as renowned as Fernando Alonso and Daniel Ricciardo – both Monaco Grand Prix winners – say they feel they are extracting the maximum from their new cars, only to glance at the timing screens and see they are half a second or so off their respective young team-mates – who are both yet to win a race never mind a world title – is quite astonishing. Alonso was ahead of Ocon throughout Monaco practice, until Ocon got Pirelli’s tyres into a better temperature range during qualifying. But even if Monaco…

Winning the Monaco Grand Prix put Max Verstappen in the lead of the world championship for the first time in his career. You could say it’s about time, since this is his seventh season in F1 and his 124th grand prix – even though he’s still only 23… Monaco always presents challenges in terms of getting to places and the COVID restrictions have added to that, but it was still possible to get on the start-finish straight after the race to photograph the celebrations. The Red Bull mechanics are an incredibly competitive group of people and you can see their joy here as well as Max’s after what was a well-earned victory. Where Monte Carlo, Monaco When 5.05pm, Sunday 23 May 2021 Details Nikon D6, 24-70mm lens, 1/320th @ F6.3…

On any other Monaco Grand Prix weekend this bridge, which connects the paddock and the pits and runs over the circuit at Rascasse, would be absolutely rammed with people. So this was a rare opportunity to attempt a shot with the harbour in the background, the light playing off the metalwork, and just one person in the frame. The Mercedes social media team had been out and about doing some filming with Valtteri back at his apartment and were returning to the circuit, so I asked if we could do a shot here. Valtteri said, “OK, what do you want me to do?” I said, “It’s going to be a silhouette, so you can do what you want…” Where Monte Carlo, Monaco When 10.41am, Wednesday 19 May 2021 Details Canon…

PICTURES THE DATA SIGNS ARE GOOD FOR A CLOSE BATTLE After the last test of the winter, or as was the case this year the only test of the winter, fans are always asking themselves what the pecking order is and how close is the competition going to be in the coming season. Even the teams, which actually have very little to gain materially from such knowledge, spend hours analysing every run their competitors make. The understanding they gain does not impact on the work they do – one always works at the limit to add performance to a Formula 1 car, whether it is the class of the field or sitting sadly on the last row of the grid. However, F1 personnel are hugely competitive people for whom success…

Formula 1 consumes money like no other motor racing category – and very few other sports – on the planet. The sums involved are vast and, to pass through these barriers to entry, you need access to some serious cash. As with thoroughbred horse racing’s standing as the ‘sport of kings’, the prestige and status of F1 attracts some wealthy people. Take, for instance, the Claro sticker on the rear wing of the Red Bull. Claro is the South American arm of America Movil, a Forbes Global 2000 telecoms group which employs almost 200,000 staff, with a head office in Mexico City and reported revenues north of $50billion. Its chairman, Carlos Slim Helu, has a net worth of $62.8billion (according to Forbes) and is the world’s 16th richest man. He…

PICTURES Racing drivers softening their transition from the cockpit to civilian life by acting as ‘brand ambassadors’ is nothing new. When injury forced Sir Stirling Moss to retire before his time, he very quickly discovered that simply being Stirling Moss was supremely valuable. Likewise, Sir Jackie Stewart ensured Ford Motor Company products flew off the forecourts even before he stepped out of his Tyrrell cockpit for the last time in 1973. Until the pandemic put the brakes on corporate hospitality, he was still energetically entertaining guests of a certain watch company, race in, race out, in modern times – indeed, when GP Racing quipped how ironic it was that being a Rolex ambassador seemed to leave him with no time on his hands, he guffawed and said, “Thanks! I’ll use…

PICTURES PETER COLLINS HAD IT ALL… Blessed with movie star looks, and charm to match, he was everyone’s idea of what a 1950s racing driver should be, and for a time – sadly brief – he was among the best in the world. The son of a motor dealer, Collins began racing in 1949 with a Formula 3 Cooper, and quickly made his mark. By 1952 he was into the world championship with HWM, at the same time joining the Aston Martin sportscar squad. Back then drivers took part in all manner of events, and Collins drove many different cars, his performances in Tony Vandervell’s Thinwall Special leaving no doubts of his ability to handle power. In 1955 Collins won the International Trophy at Silverstone in the Owen Racing Organisation’s…

FINISHING STRAIGHT 1 Déjà vu for Verstappen as Hamilton snatches victory A counter-intuitive two-stop strategy enabled Lewis Hamilton to catch and pass Max Verstappen after ceding the lead of the Spanish Grand Prix at the start – on a circuit where track position is king and processional racing is the norm. From second on the grid, Verstappen made a good start and asserted himself in a typically aggressive move into the first corner. Ordinarily in Barcelona that would have been that barring incidents or potential undercuts around the pitstops, but two key factors enabled Mercedes to execute a virtual repeat of the 2019 Hungarian GP, where Lewis made an extra pitstop and was able to hunt Max down for the win. Firstly, while both started on Pirelli’s soft tyres, Hamilton…

25-27 June 2021 and 2-4 July 2021 Red Bull Ring FINISHING STRAIGHT THE MAIN EVENT F1 has played its joker in response to the COVID-related cancellations of the Canadian GP and its putative replacement in Turkey, scheduling back-to-back rounds in the bubble-friendly foothills of Styria. It used to be fashionable to dismiss the Red Bull Ring as a neutered copy of the glorious Österreichring but it has produced some compelling racing since rejoining the F1 calendar in 2014. In 2020 the same compounds were used in the two rounds here, while changing them between Silverstone’s races; as GP Racing closed for press it hadn’t been decided whether a variation is necessary or do-able here this year. 2020 RACES RECAP Valtteri Bottas led the season-opening Austrian GP from lights to flag…

MARK GALLAGHER In addition to his regular column on page 29, Mark analyses how the big three teams are coping with F1's budget cap. See page 60 CHARLES BRADLEY Motorsport.com's global editor-in-chief investigates who the richest people in F1 are and what's in their wallets (p32) BEN EDWARDS Former racer Ben explains that using fantastic car control isn't necessarily the quickest way round a track (p22) STUART CODLING Codders finds out what ex-Sauber and Haas driver Esteban Gutiérrez is up to now (p54), and takes a look at the McLaren MP4/1 (p80) Thanks to Luca Colajanni, Russell Day, Jacques Heckstall-Smith, Silvia Hoffer Frangipane, Vicky Lloyd, Bradley Lord, Gemma Lusty, Rosa Herrero Venegas, Richard Wilson…

This is a classic Monaco shot but, on a sunny day on one of those rare years where there aren’t too many people around, why not? You stand on the inside of the track with your back to Rothschilds’ bank and the cars rocket by up the hill. On the street map this is where the Avenue d’Ostende connects to the Avenue de Monte Carlo, but of course on the track it all falls under the blanket section of ‘Beau Rivage’, named after the exclusive apartment complex nearby. The iconic Hotel de Paris and its designer clothing outlets exude a kind of moneyed timelessness. There are other street circuits on the calendar but only Monaco looks like this… Where Monte Carlo, Monaco When 12.29pm, Thursday 20 May 2021 Details Canon…

01 FLEXIBLE FIENDS F1 bent out of shape over wing saga 02 MERCEDES FACES BRAIN DRAIN Red Bull poaches staff for engine programme 03 LANDO SIGNS McLAREN DEAL 01 It began with an offhand remark by Lewis Hamilton during the Spanish Grand Prix weekend and could end with Mercedes lodging protests against key rivals. Hamilton’s incendiary claim that Red Bull fitted a “bendy wing” to its RB16Bs on the Saturday of the race weekend, gaining “three tenths” of a second per lap, reignited a disputed issue which has lain dormant for years. Moveable aerodynamic devices are banned in F1, and in an ideal world the rulemakers would prefer no part of the car to move or flex other than the DRS, which is permitted. But it is physically impossible for…

@_markgallagher MAX MOSLEY: A DIFFICULT MAN TO IGNORE The death of Max Mosley has caused many to reflect on the life and legacy of a pivotal figure in world motorsport. It is clear that mainstream media did not much like Mosley. The feeling was mutual. He had the misfortune to be born into an infamous family and the good fortune to benefit from their wealth. Following his death, reports focused on the political beliefs of his parents, Sir Oswald and Lady Diana Mosley, and the fact that Max Mosley had sex. While many people have sex with several partners during their lifetime, often using many different rooms in their homes to do so, Mosley’s mistake was to have sex with all of them at once and in a basement. Throw…

PICTURES In another life Max Rufus Mosley, who has died aged 81, might have become prime minister or attained similar political grandee status. Educated, urbane and charming, with a brilliant intellect, he studied physics at Oxford, served in the Territorial Army, and qualified as a barrister. A career in politics might have beckoned but did not – could not – eventuate, for above all he was the son of the British Union of Fascists leader Sir Oswald Mosley. His mother Diana, one of the famous Mitford sisters who delighted and scandalised society in the 1930s, openly advocated Adolf Hitler. Though Mosley’s earliest memories of his parents were visiting them in Holloway prison, and he would later describe his early political leanings as “liberal and slightly left”, his name meant he…

IN CASE YOU HAVEN’T NOTICED, MERCEDES IS COUNTING THE PENNIES. It first came to our attention during the controversy surrounding George Russell’s collision with Valtteri Bottas at Imola. The fall-out from that included Mercedes engineering director Andy Shovlin admitting the repair costs might have an impact on car development. “This sort of damage isn’t really in the plan,” Shovlin revealed in the aftermath of the accident. “The bill in terms of carbon work and metalwork will be very extensive from that.” A month later the team announced it would be withdrawing from a two-day wet-weather test at Paul Ricard, part of Pirelli’s ongoing evaluations of the 18-inch tyres being introduced next season. “We couldn’t take the costs related to the tyre test,” insists team principal Toto Wolff, “and we wouldn’t…

FINISHING STRAIGHT 1 A nightmare weekend for Mercedes To see Lewis Hamilton genuinely failing to reach the top six when it mattered in Monaco was difficult to compute given how flawless he and Mercedes usually are. Hamilton struggled all weekend. Third in FP2, 0.390s off Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, was the closest Lewis came to being on the pace. He was 0.726s adrift in FP3, 0.684s off in Q1, 0.519s away in Q2 and 0.749s behind in Q3, classified only seventh in each of those sessions… He called FP3 “a disaster”, saying Mercedes “completely missed the ball” with its set-up evolution from Thursday to Saturday. Moncao is a low-speed, low-energy circuit with a smooth asphalt. This makes it extra difficult for a car which has proved to be gentle on tyres…

I really liked McLaren’s one-off Gulf livery for the Monaco Grand Prix. It beautifully evokes the spirit of motor racing. This is a classic shot at the exit of Casino Square where there are just two holes for photographers to lean through. Usually you have to get there a couple of hours early, but the upside of the pandemic was being alone here this year. You feel quite exposed as you lean out and you need to make sure your camera strap is tucked in as the cars go by! At this point in second practice the more committed drivers are starting to come over right near the wall. It’s a great place to experience the sheer speed of an F1 car. Where Monte Carlo, Monaco When 3.03pm, Thursday 20…

You’ve probably read quite a lot over the past year about photographers being frustrated by various COVID-related regulations but this is one shot which wouldn’t have happened without them! Just a few minutes earlier I was standing somewhere else but was reminded by security that, as Aston Martin’s photographer, my bailiwick was confined to the area around that team’s pit. I’d just arrived there, by the barriers overlooking the exit of the swimming pool complex, and was bringing my camera up to my eye as I heard the initial ‘clonk’ of Leclerc’s right-front wheel hitting the barrier. Quite a lucky piece of timing… Where Monte Carlo, Monaco When 3.00pm, Saturday 22 May 2021 Details Canon EOS R5, 100-500mm lens, 1/1300th @ F5.6…

02 Having secured a deal with Honda to take on the intellectual property of its hybrid power unit and become an engine manufacturer in its own right, Red Bull has gone shopping for engineering talent to crew its new Milton Keynes-based powertrains division. Naturally it has gone headhunting just down the road at Brixworth, home of the multiple championship-winning Mercedes-Benz High Performance Powertrains – to the barely disguised chagrin of Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff. Red Bull announced at the end of April it had appointed former Mercedes HPP man Ben Hodgkinson as technical director. During nearly 20 years with the company, joining when it was known as Ilmor Engineering, he rose to the position of head of mechanical engineering. His focus is understood to be on long-term development as…

@benedwardstv PICTURES CAR CONTROL MAY ONLY TAKE DRIVERS SO FAR Extreme car control is a joy to behold. Photographs of Ronnie Peterson applying opposite lock around the old Woodcote corner at Silverstone, or replays of Max Verstappen saving his Toro Rosso from impact against Armco barriers in Brazil in 2016, give us a visual treat of seeing driving skills at the highest level. Max has delivered plenty of other moments to relish, such as his perfect 360-degree spin at Hockenheim in 2019, which didn’t prevent him from winning the race, and his reactive save of a sideways restart at Imola this year. Training in karts on slick tyres in the rain under the watchful guidance of his father Jos helped Max develop a truly instinctive feel for the correction of…

CV 2018 – Present Managing Director, AP Racing 2014 – 2018 Head of Sales, AP Racing 2012 – 2014 General Manager Manufacturing, AP Racing 2007 – 2011 F1 Race Engineer, AP Racing 2003 – 2006 Design Engineer, AP Racing 1999 – 2003 Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering), Oxford Brookes University GP Racing: AP Racing has been around since before suppliers were allowed to put their logos on racing cars – and it seems you’ve spent a long time there yourself. David Hamblin: Yes, AP Racing man and boy. I’m an engineer by trade. That’s what I do, what drives me is the technical side. I started at AP Racing via a work placement at university, did a few years in engineering, then I went more customer-facing for four years in…

There must be something about the way Max Verstappen drives Red Bull’s recent Formula 1 cars that perturbs whoever happens to occupy the other cockpit. Four different sidekicks in as many seasons amounts to a level of instability rarely seen in Milton Keynes since Dietrich Mateschitz first entered the fray in 2005. Daniel Ricciardo, once the favoured son, saw which way the wind was blowing and chose to ‘leave home’ for a fresh start – or “running from a fight”, as Christian Horner saw it. Pierre Gasly lasted just 12 races before Red Bull sent him back where he came, and now he is reborn. No such luck for Alex Albon, who toils in the DTM because there’s no room left at the inn. Now Sergio Pérez is the man…

PICTURES THE HISTORY OF LOTUS PART 3: 1968-76 Colin Chapman was the (John Player) Special One of grand prix racing in the 1970s. Just not all of the time. For certain generations black and gold fag-packet Lotus racing cars distil the essence of Formula 1 – either in full-scale or Corgi toy form. But the decade in which Lotus clinched four world championships and its drivers three more for themselves was a frustratingly inconsistent one, coloured by golden heights to match the glory days of Jimmy Clark, and offset against the deepest blackspots of mediocrity, misfires and failure. That was all Chapman: often inspired, always alive to the next big thing, but at times distracted by the burning ambition of a rapidly growing empire. Under a tamer chief, Team Lotus…

WHY THIS MAKES THE PERFECT GIFT FOR HIM: ⏹ DETAILED INSIGHT ⏹ STUNNING IMAGERY ⏹ EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS ⏹ THE BEST F1 WRITERS ⏹ FREE HOME DELIVERY THERE’S EVEN MORE ONLINE We’ve made it even easier to read about Formula 1. Our print + digital bundle will include access to Autosport Plus, unlocking unlimited stories of their favourite motorsport series on autosport.com. The print + digital bundle also gives access to the digital magazine on all devices, so GP Racing can be enjoyed any time, anywhere. GO ONLINE TO PURCHASE: WWW.AUTOSPORTMEDIA.COM/OFFER/GPJUN21 Terms and conditions: Offer valid for UK subscriptions only. You will be charged £19.99 and receive 4 issues of GP Racing magazine. Offer ends 27 June 2021.…

18-20 June 2021 Circuit Paul Ricard FINISHING STRAIGHT THE MAIN EVENT Touching back down on the calendar after some pandemic turbulence – it was cancelled last year and has been shunted around again to enable the double-header in Austria – the French GP offers one of F1’s most distinctive backdrops. Paul Ricard sits on a plateau in the coastal foothills of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, and its colourful striped borders of high-abrasion asphalt bear testament to its recent incarnation as a test rather than race track. Since F1 returned in 2018 racing has been processional even though the circuit features a feisty combination of corners and high-speed straights. That may change since 70% of the track has been resurfaced ahead of the 2021 event, including all the corners bar one. 2019 RACE…

FINISHING STRAIGHT NORMAN CONQUEST Author Vic Norman Price £45 porterpress.co.uk Motor racing attracts some fascinating characters with eclectic connections. This illustrated memoir chronicles stunt pilot and sometime Ferrari dealer Vic Norman’s colourful life, which included waterskiing as a youth with the likes of Stirling Moss and Donald Campbell. Norman’s father, “an East End boy made good”, made a fortune manufacturing US jukeboxes under licence in the 1950s. The book covers Vic’s time in the RAF and the Red Arrows through to collecting and preparing racing cars, historic F1 racing, and latterly a business providing aerial stunt displays and wing walking. It’s a life that’s anything but dull. Norman was introduced to the Le Mans 24 Hours by – who else? – Alain de Cadenet, and he sold Pink Floyd drummer…

FINISHING STRAIGHT @CoddersF1 facebook.com/gpracingonline {FULL THROTTLE MUSINGS WITH} STUART CODLING PICTURES F1’S TRICKY PLASTIC WASTE PARTNERSHIPS In big business there will always be a tension between being seen to do the right thing and actually doing the right thing. Indeed, being seen to do the right thing has become a business in itself as global corporations partner up with organisations which can help them apply an environmental and socially responsible gloss. You might argue a sport such as motor racing, largely dependent on the consumption of fossil fuels, both in terms of on-track operations and transporting personnel and equipment to venues, may as well just accept pariah status and get on with it. But that argument is not a great ‘sell’ to potential sponsors at the more investor-dependent end of…